He countdown was over. The clock of fate had ticked down to its final day. For Ernest Acura, there were no more chances, no more mistakes to hide behind. His soul had been tormented, his heart broken, his body worn thin from grief, and yet the cruel laughter of Lucifer had not stopped echoing in his ears.
And then—at the brink of despair—he saw him.
The old man. A withered figure cloaked in radiant white, his beard glistening like starlight. His staff shone with a fire older than creation, and his eyes carried the calm authority of eternity itself.
"Choose, Ernest Acura," the old man said, his voice layered with both thunder and whisper. "Take the life you have always desired—fame without shame, joy without sorrow, peace without pain—or take this crown."
The crown shimmered, forged not of gold, but of living light that burned without consuming.
Ernest trembled, his heart pounding. He thought of his family, of his failures, of the crushing weight of guilt that Lucifer had forced him to carry. And then he thought of meaning—the kind that no mockery, no fame, no poison could ever strip away.
"I… I choose the crown," he whispered.
The old man's form shifted, blazing brighter, his disguise falling away. Wings unfurled, vast and endless, stretching across the sky like constellations reborn. His face radiated a beauty and terror beyond mortal comprehension.
"I am Gabriel, messenger of the Lord Most High," the angel declared, his voice shaking the fabric of the earth. "And you, Ernest Acura, are chosen. No longer will you be mocked, for you are reborn. Rise, Metatron—the Prince of Presence!"
The Ascension
Heaven split open. The skies above tore into rivers of fire and oceans of light, and Metatron ascended through the Divine Flames. Each step stripped away the frailty of humanity and rewove him into something far beyond space, time, or logic.
His body became luminous, forged of holy fire that neither burned nor dimmed. His voice, when he first spoke, rang like ten thousand trumpets, layered with whispers of eternity. His gaze pierced through shadows, seeing evil wherever it lurked, unraveling deception with the weight of divine truth.
He was given titles by the Seraphim themselves:
Angel of the Lord – chosen to speak with the authority of the Almighty.
The Prince of Presence – he who stands closest to the throne of God.
The Seer of Evil – eyes that pierce corruption wherever it festers.
The Keeper of Truth – voice that no demon can twist or silence.
The Last Scribe – the recorder of Heaven's decrees and man's destiny.
And with his new essence came gifts from the Lord Himself:
The Aegis of Eternity – a shield that blocked not only blade or fire but despair, corruption, and even the concept of death itself. Nothing could pierce it, for it was woven from the breath of God.
The Sword of Silence – the blade that once felled Leviathan, sharpened on the Word of Creation. It could sever not flesh alone, but soul, memory, and destiny.
Metatron stood transformed, no longer the boy of mistakes, but the archangelic force who would stand against the abyss.
The Rise of the Princes of Hell
But even as Metatron blazed in glory, the earth below trembled with a darker fire.
Through witchcraft and ritual, mankind—ignorant and greedy—opened what should never have been touched: gateways into the infernal domains. They sought power, wealth, forbidden knowledge, and in their blindness, they shattered the seals that kept the great Princes of Hell bound.
From the depths, they rose—each a tyrant of their own dominion, each a terror who could rival archangels and stand against seraphim. Their very names curdled air, burned stone, and shook the firmament.
Lucifer – Pride (also Wrath): The Morning Star, radiant in his rebellion. His voice could sway empires, his pride reshaping reality itself. He was wrath cloaked in beauty, pride incarnate, the brightest shadow.
Beelzebub – Gluttony (also Pride and Sloth): Lord of flies, devourer of worlds, a hunger that no universe could fill. He consumed faith, joy, even memory, leaving only emptiness.
Asmodeus – Lust: The corrupter of flesh and spirit, twister of desires. His dominion was temptation itself, bending nations through passion and ruin.
Leviathan – Envy: The primordial serpent, coils vast enough to choke the stars. Its envy poisoned creation, its gaze unraveling the bonds of love.
Belphegor – Sloth (also Vanity): Lord of stagnation, who whispered promises of greatness through laziness. His domain was invention turned to idleness, brilliance smothered by apathy.
Mammon – Greed: The dragon of wealth, scales forged of gold. His breath corrupted treasures, kingdoms, and dreams, until all bowed before avarice.
Satan – Wrath (also Pride): Not merely an enemy, but the adversary. The raw embodiment of hatred and rage, wielding fire older than the stars.
Mundus – Pride: A rival prince, master of dominion and conquest, ruling with iron will and chains unbreakable.
Pythius – Despair: His presence was hopelessness. Where he walked, suicides followed, joy withered, and even angels wept.
Merihem – Lust: The plague-bringer of passion and destruction, spreading ruin through pleasure that soured into agony.
Dis – Wrath: A tyrant of fire and iron, commander of armies that shattered realms.
Mephistopheles – Pride (also Wrath): The deceiver of scholars, the corrupter of knowledge, cloaking pride in wisdom that damned.
Lilith – Lust (also Pride and Wrath): Mother of demons, seductress of worlds, her beauty bound wills as chains.
Dagon – Envy: Lord of the deep, whisperer of drowning madness.
Belial – Sloth (also Wrath): A liar of infinite tongues, whose very promises chained the strongest to ruin.
Bael – Wrath: The warlord of fury, leading legions through endless conquest.
Barbelo – Pride: Exalted false light, a rival throne that mimicked divinity.
Astaroth – Sloth (also Gluttony): A philosopher of lies, whose reasoning turned faith to dust.
Abaddon – Sloth (also Wrath and Discord): The angel of the pit, commander of locust armies, breaker of hope.
Amaymon – Wrath: A lord of the eastern winds, chaos riding his breath.
Levistus – Wrath (also Envy): The frozen tyrant, envy carved into ice, wrath locked into glaciers eternal.
Dispater – Pride: The iron king, ruler of endless citadels in Hell's heart.
Azazel – Pride (also Corruption): The scapegoat fallen, master of forbidden arts, corruptor of man through hidden knowledge. His wings once blazed, but now dripped with shadow, carrying him as teacher of sorcery to mortals.
Together, the Princes of Hell stirred, and their laughter shook the earth. Each controlled legions beyond number, their domains bleeding into reality as the human rituals grew stronger.
And they sought one goal: to unmake the barrier of creation, to drag Heaven down and raise Hell above.
The Burden of Metatron
Metatron—the once-foolish Ernest Acura—stood as the final bastion. Heaven's light surged through him, and yet he trembled at the weight of his task. To stop humanity from tearing open the gateways. To hold back the princes whose power could rival even the seraphim. To stand as shield and sword of the Lord against the darkest tide.
The battle of eternity had begun, and only the Chosen One could decide its end.